37 savings account interest rates will be lowered nationwide

After the Bank of England decided to cut the base rate in December, Nationwide Building Society is slashing interest rates

Nationwide is lowering rates on 37 savings accounts following the Bank of England's (BoE) base rate reduction last month.

After ratesetters at the BoE lowered the base rate from 4 percent to 3.75 percent on December 18, the building society is cutting rates by as much as 0.25 percentage points starting on February 10.

Nationwide is cutting prices on a number of products, such as its Smart Junior ISA Maturity, Flex Instant Saver, and One-year Triple Access Online Saver.

As of February 10th, there will be no changes for customers with Flex Regular Saver, FlexOne Saver, Start to Save, Smart Instant Access, SmartSaver, or Smart Limited Access savings accounts.

Tom Riley, director of group retail products at Nationwide, stated: "Our range continues to pay more than the market average, giving savers every reason to put their money with Nationwide, even though we've made reductions to a number of savings accounts. The "

Which accounts at Nationwide are impacted?

On February 10, Nationwide will lower rates by between 0.15 and 0.25 percentage points.

Its Continue to Save product will see a decrease from 1.75 percent to 1.5 percent, and its Help to Buy ISA's headline rate will drop from 2.5 percent to 2.25 percent.

Its Branch Instant Access Maturity savings account will decrease from 1.45 percent to 1.25 percent, and its Limited Access One-year Triple Access Online Saver will drop from 3.5 percent to 3.3 percent.

The Nationwide savings accounts that will have their interest rates reduced in February are broken down in detail below.

Source: All over the country.

1 Flex Saver/Flex ISA: 0-9,999.99 between 1.25 and 1.15 percent; 10K-49,999.99 between 1.35 and 1.20 percent; 50K+ between 1.45 and 1.25 percent.

Two instant access points: 0-9,999.99 from 1.10 percent to 1.10 percent; 10K-49,999.99 from 1.15 percent to 1.15 percent; and 50K+ from 1.35 percent to 1.20 percent.

What are the options for impacted Nationwide customers?

You could switch from your Nationwide savings account to one that pays a higher rate somewhere else if you don't have a strong sense of loyalty.

According to Sophie Barber, an analyst at the personal finance comparison website Finder, Chase's easy access savings account currently pays 4.5 percent AER interest. It is accessible to people who open a current account with the bank and permits limitless withdrawals.

You can also open a cash ISA if you haven't used up all of your ISA allowance for the 2025 - 2026 tax year.

Now might be a good time to enroll in an ISA since the 20,000 annual cash allowance for under-65s will be lowered to 12,000 starting in April 2027, according to Barber.

Currently, Plum and Moneybox offer cash ISAs that pay 4.32 percent AER, while Trading212 pays 4.33 percent AER on its easy access cash ISA.

You can also lock up your money by enrolling in a Shawbrook Bank one-year fixed rate cash ISA that pays 4.14 percent AER.

If you have a lot of money saved up, cash ISAs might be a better option than taxable fixed-rate bonds, according to Anna Bowes, a savings specialist at financial planning firm The Private Office.

The top one-year fixed rate bond is currently paying 4.55 percent AER, while the top one-year fixed rate cash ISA is paying 4.14 percent tax-free/AER.

According to Bowes, the bond was "clearly the winner" for individuals who do not pay taxes on their savings because it would yield an additional 41 in gross interest for every £10,000 deposited.

However, according to her calculations, people who are paying taxes on their savings interest would be better off choosing the cash ISA because savings made there would not be subject to taxes.

"A basic rate taxpayer with a deposit of 20,000 would earn 828 in the cash ISA, but only 728 from the bond, if they had already used their personal savings allowance," Bowes explained. "The rate on the bond would fall to 3.64 percent after basic rate tax had been deducted."

Additionally, Bowes advised Nationwide clients who are thinking about closing their savings accounts to consider whether doing so might disqualify them from receiving a Fairer Share payment this year.

Since 2023, the building society has made 100 payments to qualified clients annually; however, it has not yet confirmed whether another payment will be made in 2026.

The requirements for eligibility will probably be the same as they were in 2025, when you had to have a qualifying current account and qualifying savings account or a qualifying current account and qualifying mortgage open with the building society, if the Fairer Share payment is made again this year.